City of York Council will work to provide more affordable childcare places in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the city under a new plan being considered next week (Friday, February 21).

The council's Executive is being asked next week to back proposals from the York Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership - which is steered by the council's early years service - to increase the number of affordable places and drive up quality over the next year.

The partnership's latest yearly plan reveals that the partnership expects to reach its target of creating 3465 childcare places across the city by March next year.

The plan also includes a commitment to providing access to childcare for lone parents entering employment.

Foxwood, Westfield, Bootham, and Clifton have all been identified as wards with pockets of deprivation where the development of affordable childcare will be a made a priority over the coming year.

Places will also be created in areas that have little or no provision at present, particularly in the more rural areas of the city.

Councillor Janet Looker, the council's executive member for education, said, "This is good news for all parents with young children and is a tribute to the work of the Early Years service and the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership in the city."

The places will be created by the Early Years Service and EYDCP working with a variety of government initiatives such as Shared Foundation for Children, Sure Start and the Neighbourhood Nursery Initiative.

Both Sure Start and the nursery initiative focus on deprived areas and will offer health, social services, education and care to young children and support for families.

Quality issues will be addressed by implementing Quality Assurance schemes for all providers and by raising training levels of childcare practitioners.

This will also involve ensuring that all childcare providers that deliver a Foundation Stage Curriculum have access to a qualified teacher status (QTS) teacher and an area Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO). City of York Council has already gained an award for this work which exceeds government targets.

Once a new implementation has been approved a summary and copy will be available for public inspection.

These will be available at York Central Library or through contacting Donna Gibbs at the Early Years and Childcare Service, Mill House, North Street, York, YO1 6JD (telephone 01904 554442).

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Notes for Editors: EYDCPs were set up by the Government. However it is the responsibility of the (council) Local Education Authority to convene and service the Partnership which should have representatives from the Local Authority, schools, Learning Skills Council, local employers, the private, voluntary and independent sector providers of care, education and out of school childcare, childminders, the Children's Information Service, Further and Higher Education colleges, the health service, the diocese, special educational needs groups, Employment Services and New Deal Partnerships, parents, Ofsted, Sure Start representatives and Council members.

Members of the Partnership are nominated by and charged with representing the interests of their particular sector. The overarching role is to promote the best interests of children and families in their area and not solely to press for the specific interests of their group.

The DfES set 29 strategic targets and five strategic goals and the LEA and the EYDCP work to write a three year Strategic Plan and a yearly Implementation Plan. These plans are approved by council and finally signed off by the Secretary of State.